I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for making a temporary crown or temporary laminate in dental applications.
II. Description of the Prior Art
It is frequently necessary to construct temporary crowns or onlays in dental applications, such as preparing caps for teeth. In such applications, the temporary crown protects the exposed tooth until a permanent crown can be fabricated and installed.
In the previously known method for constructing a temporary crown, the dentist utilizes an impression tray which is selected to cover the selected area or quadrant of the patient's mouth. This tray is typically filled with alginet or similar material and then placed in the patient's mouth in the affected area. After the alginet sets, the alignet forms a mold of the affected area of the patient's mouth.
Thereafter, the dentist uses the mold created by the alginet to create a temporary crown which is then cemented onto the tooth after the dentist has machined, ground or filed the tooth to the desired shape.
This previously known method for creating temporary crowns, however, suffers from several disadvantages. One such disadvantage is that the overall method for creating the temporary crown is detailed and time consuming. Consequently, the previously known method for creating temporary crowns requires extended "chair time" for the patient and dentist.
A still further disadvantage of this previously known method for creating temporary crowns is that the alignet or like material which is used to take an impression of the affected area of the mouth is relatively expensive. This, of course, increases the costs of making the temporary crown.